Not a problem, I enjoyed the insight on urns too. How about if anyone who wants to continue "urn talk" starts a new thread? And anyone who want to discuss online venues can continue here.

Mea

I agree Mea. The thread started as a good spot to learn what others are doing to build their on-line presence with a couple of great ideas being presented in the beginning and then we lost focus. It would be great if we could get back to that.

To expand on my earlier post about DRIP campaigns to describe what I am doing here to launch my new venture. I am new to the Sedona area and a “reborn” potter who has been away from clay for 20+ years. I have been doing research online and capturing names and email addresses for the 4 surrounding communities from places like: chamber of commerce members and boards, local art organizations and boards, city councils, local artists, cultural organization boards, local winery owners (yes, AZ has wine country and this is the spot) and my realtor got me a list of all home owners in the area with houses larger than 4000 sq ft. You get the idea - focusing on people who are pre-disposed to art. I have built this list to 5000 plus names over the last several months in odd moments.

When my studio is finally complete, I will launch the "opt-in" campaign to finalize my list and then start the DRIP campaign - most likely with the first communication announcing a Studio Open House. I plan to collaborate with a local, well known restaurant and a winery, so that we can leverage each other’s marketing and create a win-win for all of us.

It is fairly risky to harvest email addresses like that. Though not technically illegal, it can get you into trouble anyways, and is generally considered to be very bad form. The current law (the CAN-SPAM act of 2003) has some pretty clear rules for sending commercial emails. Make sure you follow these so you don't end up in hot water!http://business.ftc....-guide-business

Bottom line is ... it is best to stick to opt-in lists only, and still follow all of the above guidelines.

I'd also like to mention ArtfulHome.com. This website/catalog is highly selective and upscale. It was a printed catalog long before it was a website, they've been around for a long time. You can apply to work with them through JuriedArtServices.com.

Thanks for the thread, Mea.

Have you (or has anyone else) used this outfit? (ArtfulHome). The entry fee is a bit daunting for a newb... especially if there's an Etsy-like prospect of wallowing in a sea of knick-knacks. On the flip side, it does look a little bit more discriminating...

It is fairly risky to harvest email addresses like that. Though not technically illegal, it can get you into trouble anyways, and is generally considered to be very bad form. The current law (the CAN-SPAM act of 2003) has some pretty clear rules for sending commercial emails. Make sure you follow these so you don't end up in hot water!http://business.ftc....-guide-business

Bottom line is ... it is best to stick to opt-in lists only, and still follow all of the above guidelines.

Mea

Mea:

Sorry, I must not have been clear. I absolutely plan to communicate with this list of names and ask them to opt-in. I will not use Mail Chimp or any other email campaign platform to do this. Rather I will send them individual emails with an approach centered on their interest in the arts and ask them to opt-in. My expectation, based upon experience is that I will gather 10-15% of the list as opted-in members if I targeted it correctly. These percentages are based upon doing this with literally thousands of email addresses targeting potential customers for alternative energy systems. We never violated anti-spam laws with this approach.

I couldn’t agree more that you have to be very careful on how you approach this type of marketing but it is worth the effort if you have to build a data base from scratch or you want to exponentially expand your email list.